When Kunal was born in July 1985, his first pediatrician who was a tactful and wise person told my wife and me the implications of the extra chromosome in his system. Later his parents, my daughter and her husband also came to know about it. Our first reaction was consternation and confusion. But we decided that feeling of defeatism would help nobody. My wife rose to the occasion and decided to devote all her attention to providing Kunal all the physical and emotional help he needed. My daughter decided to pursue a graduate degree in special education so she could cater to the special needs of her son. Our efforts of the last two decades and more have paid off. Today Kunal is a proud holder of a black belt in Karate. He has also won gold medals in swimming at state level Special Olympics in Massachusetts. Even when I was in India, I was convinced that any democratic society must devote itself assiduously to social welfare, which includes the needs of those citizens who have special needs. Ever since I came to reside permanently in the States three years ago, I have seen the level of social awareness of such kids is much higher in USA than in any other third world country. I am sure as time goes by greater efforts will be made to locate and foster the talents of such persons. This will lead to harnessing these talents to meet the needs of society by creating suitable jobs for them. This will make their lives richer. Surely, society will also be the richer for it.

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